Stuck Gear Leg in Tower

[skelrad]

Working on test fitting the gear legs into the gear towers of my 9A - The right side gear leg slid right into the tower and reaming the hole was a 30 second task. The left side, not so much. It went in 99% of the way with a little tapping, but stopped 1/16” short. I thought “no big deal, I’ll just take it out and try again.” Wow, was I wrong. That thing is stuck! I’ve tried pounding it out with a big drift pin and hammer, using heat on the tower, penetrating spray, etc. I’m at a loss, aside from just getting a bigger sledge and really going at it (I’ll have to figure out how to hold the tower in place to the bench - kind of an awkward shape to clamp down).

Any solutions from others who have found themselves in the same pickle? And yes, I did clean up the surfaces and lubed them before inserting.

 

[PaulvS]

Try twisting/wiggling it back and forth via the axle while pulling, that's how I managed to get the legs in and out of the sockets. NB there is a left and a right gear leg (should be stamped on the end) and matched to the socket, just in case...

 

[Webb]

Try an equal part mixture of automatic transmission fluid and acetone.

 

[Kyle Boatright]

Insert a rod into the hollow axle and use that to twist it into place.

 

[skelrad]

Thanks for the tips! Putting a rod into the axle and twisting from there sounds like a great idea that has promise.

 

[rockwoodrv9]

I know from experience that when you are putting a hammer head on a new handle you pound on the wood handle and it draws the head up. Not sure if that would work in this situation but I think I had to do that getting the leg in the tower on my 9A.

Be careful if you put a rod in the axel you do not bend it or damage it. It may be worth drilling a hole into a 4x4 about 4' long and running the axel through it. Then twist on it.

 

[Zuldarin]

Big *** rivet gun

I had the same issue when I test fit one of my gear legs. Ended up using a big rivet gun with a flat set on it.

 

[terrye]

It is possible that the drilled hole at the top of the gear leg mount (attached to the spar) has a bur on it. This may be what jammed your gear leg. Or the welding distorted the tube. The rivet gun with a flat set sounds like worth trying.

 

[Desert Rat]

I had the same thing happen. It's pretty hard to grab onto that gear leg and tug without side loading it a bit. I stuck a wooded dowel rod into the end of the axle and twisted it with one hand while while attempting to pull down without pulling sideways and it popped right out.

 

[skelrad]

Success!

It took two people, but I finally got the gear leg to pop out. A combo of heating the weldment and hitting the inboard end with a rivet gun while twisting at the axle. I'm still amazed at how stuck that thing was! The issue was that there was an extra 1/4" of powder coat on the lower end that was getting stuck inside the weldment tube. Once I sanded it back, the leg slid right in. Thanks for all of the suggestions!

 

[Mike S]

Glad you got it taken care of, and thanks for reporting back.